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Northeast warmup - hive check

Sunday in coastal New England is supposed to be 70! Today is about 55, I walked out to the hive and noticed about 20 dead bees in a line about 10' from the hive. kind of odd, so I removed the mouse guard and got on my hand an knees to look in the entrance. About 20 more dead behind mouse guard. I swept those out with a stick and clearly saw allot of activity.

I'm really hopping this is a good sign that they are doing OK. I peeked under the top cover to see if the grease/sugar patties had been touched and they had not.

Re: Northeast warmup - hive check

I am a novice beek here. I observed exactly what you did at my hive. I actually have cleansing flights and hive activity as well. I think the dead bees outside the hive are actually a fair sign. I would assume there has to be some winter loss and to me the few dead bees out of the hive are a sign that the other bees are doing their job. Lets see what others say.

Re: Northeast warmup - hive check

I swept out bees at home today as well. One hive in particular had a lot, most had a few, they were all flying which makes me feel good. It is interesting to see more activity at some hives than others, I'm sure it's a function of the queen and her genetics. The hives with the most activity for me are all dark bees.

Re: Northeast warmup - hive check

Originally Posted by stripstrike

I swept out bees at home today as well. One hive in particular had a lot, most had a few, they were all flying which makes me feel good. It is interesting to see more activity at some hives than others, I'm sure it's a function of the queen and her genetics. The hives with the most activity for me are all dark bees.

I am like a worried parent. Last week my youngest hive, a split, had no activity or dead bees on the landing board (I sweep the landing boards about once every week or so). The other 2 hives had a bit of activity when temps were in the high 30's. Today it is 65! All 3 hives look like it is mid-MAY, lots of bees flying. As far as one hive being less active than others, I have no idea.

Re: Northeast warmup - hive check

I have a hive that is on deaths door. They had a high mite load going into winter. I found eggs and young larvae today. They have been so agitated I thought they might be queenless. Their agitation may have been due the mountain of dead bees stuck by the entrance reducer on the bottom board. I am surprised they could get out to fly.

I am wondering about the moisture in the hive. I have them over an airtight empty hive body on a plywood platform I built over construction rubble in the back of my community garden. The dead bees above the inner cover had moisture on their wings and the inner cover was wet. I don't wrap or have any insulation. The wall you see is a wind break. My mentor told me to set it up like this, any thoughts? I want to make sure the other hive is going to stay dry.IMG_6243.jpgIMG_6242.jpg

Re: Northeast warmup - hive check

That is also my plan. I hope the dead bees are just the old ones. I had installed a candy board in November and would like to see if they are taking advantage of it? My first year with only one hive so it's good that others have similar observations.

Re: Northeast warmup - hive check

JMO
It appears as if the hive entrance is facing the wall, is it? If so I would face the entrance in another direction to open up the flight lines and increase air movement. Do it during the next cold weather spell so the bees will be inside for a few days and re orient when they make the next cleansing flights.
Do you have a top entrance? I winter with one and find it helps with moisture removal and housekeeping duties for the bees. Also if the bottom entrance gets clogged with ice, snow, bees, they have a way out. So does excess moisture.
I don't wrap either.
You might want to consider using the larger opening on the reducer with the slot facing up. good, passive air exchange is absolutely necessary in our moist environment.
I'd also remove that plastic? wrap around the stand, good air flow is important there as well, it will also save the bottom board from rot.
Are there enough bees left in the hive to cluster? do they have food stores or are they light?
Not much more one can do at this point without a major disruption to whatever population is left.
Finding eggs and larvae is a very good sign, be sure to seriously consider a treatment in the early spring if mites are a problem, don't hesitate.

Re: Northeast warmup - hive check

Thanks for looking at it Clyderoad. Agreed, the hive is too close to the wall. I will flip the entrance reducer. Without that plastic large sections of the screened bottom board are exposed. They have stores. I am not sure if they have enough bees to make it. Last year I had a huge die off from the mother of this hive and they came through with a tiny cluster. They were clustering, this hive seems active nonstop. I hate to see them struggle but they seem to be putting up a good fight. SNL you might remember me whining about this hive a couple months ago in my "Persistent varroa" post. I put a MAQ on this hive in Nov. and I treated the other with OA a few weeks ago.

Re: Northeast warmup - hive check

Margot,
I hope your hive can hang in there, that looks like a huge die off. Using MAQs and OA this time of year will kill the mites but the virus's that they were carrying have already damaged your bees, that's not to say your bees won't make it but they have a tough fight ahead of them. It is always best to treat the hives in September to kill most of the mites and the bees will have the opportunity to raise at least 2 cycles of healthy brood before winter sets in.

Re: Northeast warmup - hive check

I was worried about 1 of my hives because the last warm snap I didn't see any activity. It was too cold to open to check the hive for around 3 weeks. We had several inches of snow and very cold temp for this time a year. Today we are expecting temp above 60s. I just drove in and was getting stuff out of the trunk of my car and a bee buzzed my head. I was shocked because its warm but it also has been raining all morning. I went out to where my 4 hives are and saw a tone of activity at all 4 hives. I really didn't think they would be flying in the rain, but they are flying like its spring time.

Re: Northeast warmup - hive check

Margot,
Did you use Oxalic dribble or Oxalic vapor in September? The reason that I am asking is because the Oxalic vapor requires 3 consecutive treatments, 1 treatment per week for 3 weeks to get the mites in capped cells. With the Oxalic dribble only 1 treatment in the late fall is recommended however if your hive is heavy with mites at this time then the virus damage is already done.

Re: Northeast warmup - hive check

Margot1d==
I like their chances. Your additional information leads me to believe when you check them for stores on that nice warm day in February they will be itching for spring just like us. Still consider a spring treatment if mite count is anywhere near questionable.
I originally thought the bottom board was solid, I think you probably know better than me regarding the screened BB as I have only ever used solids.
Have you given a thought to an upper entrance. I feel they really make a difference re moisture and bee access.
Were there many bees flying over the last couple of days, and even today? If there was lots, I'll bet the cluster is big enough.
Correct the direction of the entrance, maybe a top entrance and it will go a long way to reducing moisture, increasing air flow and from your picture, allow the bees a longer flight line to dispose of the dead. They can drop them further from the hive and it won't look so dramatic.
Larvae and eggs are critical to see and eliminates many other questions.

Re: Northeast warmup - hive check

Margot1d==
Did you change the direction of the hive so the entrance is facing away from the wall? east or south facing is best but facing to open air is most important.
Only need a small top entrance for bee access, the penny space will help vent.
If I remember you have different strains? which strain are we discussing?

Re: Northeast warmup - hive check

gman1001==
these warm ups in temperature allow the bees to poop and clean things up a bit in the hive. They'll get rid of those dead ones pretty quickly, especially with free access.
pretty cool these little bugs, eh?